Human trafficking, which violates highly respected constitutional rights of humankind and threatens citizens’ personal immunity, is one of the most damnable taint in society. Unfortunately, nowadays the number of crimes related to human trafficking is increasing all over the world. According to UN statistics, now about 2.7 million people fall victim to human trafficking in the world every year.

Almost 2,000 people suffered from crimes related to human trafficking in Uzbekistan in 2008.

For example, the [capital’s Chilonzor] district criminal court examined a criminal case related to human trafficking against citizen Qayum Ortiqov under Article 135, Part 2, paragraphs b, d, e, i, j) on 20 January 2009. Having made a criminal arrangement with Yekaterina Inozemtsova, director of the Vesta Lemax private company, and with her daughter, Lina Inozemtsova, the deputy director of the same company; Qayum Ortiqov, took a large amount of money from a number of (more than 10) citizens and promised that he would arrange them jobs at a tile factory in Krasnodar Territory of the Russian Federation.

Yet, the mislead citizens were coldly received by the offenders’ fellows in Krasnodar Territory and were given jobs at a brick factory (not a tile factory!) in a solitary village of the territory. They had their passports taken away. The poor citizens, who worked in hard working conditions for 12-14 hours a day and lived in an accommodation with awful conditions, had to return home with difficulties after three months without getting their salaries even for two months.

The court administered relevant punishments to the offenders under certain articles of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan.

As people say a crime cannot escape punishment, those - who led people to slavery - cannot also escape it.